50 Connecticut Girl Scouts Earn The Gold

June 7, 2010

This year, 50 young women from around the state earned their Gold Award, the highest award a girl can earn in Girl Scouting.

Girl Scouts of Connecticut honored many of this year's Gold Scouts during a special ceremony on June 6, at Saint Joseph College. The girls shared their Gold Award projects and were presented with their certificates as well as congratulatory letters from Girl Scouts of Connecticut CEO, Jennifer Smith Turner and Girl Scouts of the USA. The Gold Scouts will also receive letters from Governor Rell and President Barak Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.

State Representative, Michelle Cook, was the keynote speaker at the event. As a former Girl Scout and as a current member of the Honorary Girl Scout Troop 210 at the Capitol, Representative Cook spoke to this year's Gold Scouts about being both an active community citizen as well as a female role model.

An award with national standards, the Girl Scout Gold Award represents an individual's accomplishments, leadership, commitment, creativity and personal effort contributed to making their community a better place to live. Girls spend a minimum of 65 hours planning and implementing their pre-approved Girl Scout Gold Award Projects, which are expected to have a positive and lasting impact on the community. Earning the Girl Scout Gold Award is a major accomplishment in a girl's life and a powerful example of how Girl Scouting helps girls develop the courage, confidence and character to be successful leaders today and in the future.

Through Girl Scouting, girls can discover their personal best and prepare for a positive future, connect with others in an increasingly diverse world, and take action to make the world a better place. This foundation empowers and encourages girls to take action by identifying issues and problems that they care about, and advocating for themselves and others. Girl Scouting guides girls into becoming responsible, productive adults who make a difference in the lives of their families, schools, and communities.